"How
do you dream? I mean, what can you dream of; if from under your forest ceiling
you have never seen the stars?" (Melád aphorism)

The Mélad'rhím (StyráshMélad'rhím) or
Grey Elves are best described as a nomadic gathering of
elves from both
the Injerín and the
Artyrhón tribes. The first references to them appear
to suggest that they have their origins some time around 500 b.S.,
though much lore in the North is spoken, so their precise derivations are
difficult to acertain. While originally simply a gathering of descending
elves
from other tribes, they are now a distinctive bloodline, and so may
finally deserve the title of tribe.

Picture description:A typical elf of the
Meladrhím. Pic done by Kara Webber, used with
permission.

Appearance.
The Grey elves get their name from both their appearance and their
philosophies.

Due to their hertiage from the learned
Injerín
and the rough, adventurous Artyrhón;
the Melád share many characteristics with their relatives, being tall - easily
exceeding the height of a human - with
sharp, angular features. They also tend to have a light colouring: their
complexion is best described to be typically pale, one could almost believe
them to be made of the finest porcelain if it were not for their rather unkempt
appearance. Their hair is uniformly blonde - though shade varies from a
strawberry colour all the way to pure white - which is far commoner than one
might imagine. Hair is also uniformly straight, and is worn loose by both
sexes. Their eyes are most often a soft grey, contributing to their name, but
blue, green and the lightest shade of lilac imaginable also occur.

What seperates the Melád elves from their parent tribes is the Melád's more
muscular tone, on average these wandering elves
weigh more and are far broader than either of their parent tribes. One can
assume this is due to the effect and harshness of their nomadic lifestyle which
requires them to be physically stronger. They also appear wilder than either
the Injerín
or the or the Artyrhón, but
don't let their look decieve you into believing them to be uncivilised - far
from it! Their lifestyle is based on a take on elven
philosophy that is quite unlike any tribe on the continent. Their search is
knowledge and enlightenment, it is simply that their method is different and
will be described in a later section. No one in the tribe is held to this life
style, they are free to join either the Artyrhón
or the Injerín
(who over the years have taken in some reluctant wanderers born to the tribe)
just as the tribe warmly accepts newcomers from its parent tribes.

Melád elves are often tattooed; some considerably so, using a grey ink produced
by the poeritt flower. This is a unique trait to this tribe as no other wood
elven tribe in the northern part of the
Sarvonian continent uses body art in this way.

The Melád life span is about average for that of an
elf, natural life span being some 500 to
600 years. However, more frequently than in any other wood elven tribe, their
life is cut short by external circumstances; by lack of food, attack, lack of
clothing, by the sheer harshness of the life they have chosen.

Coat of Arms/Sign.
This elven tribe has no coat of arms as
such. As a nomadic tribe they have nowhere to hang them. However, the Melád
have its own very distinctive form of art that allows their settlements and
their members to be easily identified.

The entrances to tents are often adorned with an interlocking series of lines
that usually form a circular pattern. Such patterns represent the Injčrá, a
concept that probably has its origins with the Injerín
tribe. The lines dart over and under each other in a complexity with no
ends signifying the continuity of life and the rite of renewal. In the centre
are often depicted the animals upon which the tribe are reliant for food - the
elves drive very small herds of both elk
and cuncu sheep - or more common
animals that they share the land with, that they have great respect for and try
not to disturb. Popular images are both species of
Sarvonian bear,
garthooks, wolverines and
gryphons as well as
lesser drakes. Images are
simple, bold and stylised, a world away from the careful, lifelike art created
by the other Wood Elven tribes of the North.

These images are fist painted on to rough fabric that the
elves make from spinning wool and then
weaving it, using dye extracted from the poeritt flower predominantly, but hues
of blue and reds are also harvested from the lowra and the
teki tree respectively.

Similarly when the elves reach their
mid-childhood they receive a tattoo of interlocking lines on their upper arms
if the child is male, and between the shoulder blades if female (one good way
to tell the sexes apart!). This type of art - Sú'ufán'lohoán (Styrásh
Sú'ufán'lohoán) meaning "Weaving Work"
is what the Injerín
call it - distinguishes them from the other
elves, and it pervades everything: jewelery, metal work, weapons, clothing
and what little they commit to paper is equally written surrounded by
interlocking boarders that often take longer to create than the writing itself.

Territory.
The Melád'rhím are a nomadic people of
Northern Sarvonia, with a
disliking for routine or for dwelling in one place for any period of time.
However, they are limited by natural and racial barriers, and so have in effect
adopted a pattern of migration, if a somewhat unreliable and erratic one.

The basis of their migration is the Sea. The Grey elves cannot leave the
continent as their sea dwelling cousins the Arthyron
elves do, because, as mentioned previously they drive small herds of
animals. However, they hold the mighty oceans that surround the
Northern part of the continent
in the highest respect. Consequently the first line of the "Arythásh" ("The
Principles" - a poem that sets out much of the tribes take on
elven philosophy) begins with the Sea:

"Ava
dreamt of Oceans vast
Of waves that shape the land'"

The Melád are bewitched and
enchanted by the sea, they view it as "a concept beyond mortal imagination; a
world beyond wonder, and untouchable to remain unspoilt by the grace of She who
dreams". Yet they are not seafarers, not only because of practical
consideration, but because they believe that the Dreamer sets certain mysteries
in place to remain unsolved - lest the creation forget to dream, and by
implication forget the Dreamer. The Melád elves would rather not know what lies
in and beyond the sea, but create their own ideas, poems and songs about it.
The tribe always spends the winters on the coastline as the wetter air from
the sea keeps the weather here milder than in the continental interior. They
wander, never moving far from the coastline, but stay at each site rather
longer than they would during the summer. In the winter months they may remain
for as long as 3 months in one site - as near to a permanent home as they get -
while during the summer the typical stay is only a month or so. The Grey elves prefer,
for much the same reasons, to stay in the southern area of the continent, around
the Sea of Tears, or around the Aelyvian Sea, from the Land of the
Kuglimz as
far as the world of the Kanapan Men. They are also the only
elves of any
derivation who walk in the lands of the shadow elves, the non-corporeal elves
closest in Spirit to the Chaos Lord Coór, and therefore somewhat more aligned to neutrality
than the drow. The Injerín look down on this considering it inappropriate for
worshippers of Avá. It is thought that this is probably how the tribe got its
name - that the Injerín dubbed them "Grey Elves" for walking among the Shadow
Elves.

The fact that the Melád commonly do walk these lands, possibly has something to do
with a certain amount of shared philosophy. While the Injerín
see shadow elves
as servants of the Darkness that is Coór, the Melad Elves actually
acknowledges that shadow elves have a point; that
Avá and
Coór are two sides
of the same coin, as night is day. That for the Dream, for nature to exist, the
land must be destroyed. For new life to come, death is inevitable. They cite
volcanoes, raining fire and destruction to create fertile new lands for men to
farm; they cite landslides, pulling land into sea, that the coastline ever
changes and they cite forest fires that rejuvinate old forests.

But just because the Melád sympathise with the shadow elves, does not make them
friends with the Diorye'oleal,
Ak'váth'rhím (whose self obsession is to Grey
Elven minds the pinacle of philosophical ignorance) or the Folkmore Elves or
hold any sympathies for the causes of the dark elves or the
Losh-Oc, for whom
they hold a deep disliking. They also recognise the dangers associated with
travelling in lands that belong to these tribes. This keeps them pinned firmly
in the Northern continent, and while the tribe tells tales of the day when they
will face the challenges of the Tandala Highlands and cross them to meet the
Southern lands, this is a practical impossibility as the area south of the
Celeste Lowlands represents the home to the Losh-Oc and to the
Diorye'oleal.

As a result the migration routes of the Grey Elves lie roughly between the Gulf of Glandor and
the Sea of Tears. Rarely in their history have they reached the Icelands. There
is one recorded incident of them visiting this frozen world, out of sheer
curiosity, but the tribe tells that it cost them very dearly, as they were
still migrating southward through the center heartlands of
Northern Sarvonia
when the winter fell and they suffered many deaths from cold, being to weak to
see off attacks from Rohm-Oc. They have also travelled the peninsula of Kru'ul
extensivly.

While much of the reasoning behind this migration is held in philosophical
ideals, there are also simple practical elements that keep the tribe on the
move. The tribe's extensive movements are often required to move their animals
from one grazing area to another in response to variations in terrain and
climate in order to provide the best possible conditions for their livestock
and optimize their chances of survival.

People.
The Melád elves are the true rangers of the Northlands, knowing just about all
there is to know about the world in which they live. Their knowledge is
practical, not from books or word of mouth, but from sheer necesssity. Their
knowledge of Northern Sarvonian
herblore is second to none. The craftmanship of their weapons, hunting and
skinning tools is exacting. They can tan a hide in no time at all using simply
materials they find around them. Melád can track animal, beast or being if it
passed a places up to a year previously. They can walk in stealth in the forest
and never make a sound. They are an endlessly resourceful people. But they are
lost in a city!

For the most part the Grey elves stay away from
humans. Not that they dislike them - if a
human wanders into their temporary
settlements then they would welcome him warmly and have him tell them all about
his people and his life. They are simply bemused by the concept of belonging to
one place - to have a home and to be surrounded by hundreds of people, never
leaving one place - its all a bit much for them. However, the
Kuglimz's stability means they have many
resources that the Grey Elves do not, and they are sometimes drawn to the
Kuglimz settlments to trade. Similarly,
they do not visit the Injerín settlements. They
simply make their prescence felt, and allow the Injerín
to come to them if they so wish. They do however, venture into
Arthyron settlements. They're strongest relationship
is with their seafaring cousins. Their life views are not so different and the
Arthyron are always pleased beyond words to see them
in a way the Injerín are not.
Injerín mothers worry that the Melád will spirit their children away with
the promise of adventure. Arthyron mothers hope that
the Meáad's tales of foreign parts and other races will inspire their children
to be curious and bold.

The Melád elves are not great traders, however, and will not trade with the
orcs or the dark elves, preferring simply to
avoid them where possible, far more like the Injerín
than the Arthyron. But unlike the
Injerín, they have ceased to seek knowledge in the
words of the past; not that lore and history is not important to them, it is,
but they seek as well the essence that lies within the Dream itself to be one
with the Dream by learning from it as it exists in the present. They cannot
understand how wood elven tribes can consider themselves tied to the land - the
Dream - if they do not experience it in as much of its fullness as possible
before their lives are over. The Melád are scholarly in their own way, though
and among their number there are many bards who can tell you tales of
elves in both Northern and Southern parts
of the continent. Quite how they have established this knowledge is unclear,
especially to those of the in the South, knowledge of this tribe has only
recently come to light, and yet they seem to know so much about Southern
people. The Mélad'rhím often speak of the High Lady, who does not, as it
appears, have a true name, or it has been lost to the mists of history - which
is unexpected for someone who seems to be so important to the tribe and led
some scholars to suggest she is a mere myth, perhaps stolen from tales from
surrounding elven, maybe even
human tribes. She appears to be some kind
of spiritual leader, who arrived "out of the sea, cloaked in robes of dew
itself, and gave us purpose and direction" ("The Arythásh" V3, paragraph 2).
Given the proposed first date of the tribes existence, and the existence in the
Southern Continent of a legend that one of the Axhai continued to exist in
physical form into modern times, it has been suggested that this figure might
have been Daltar, the supposed mother of the long standing
Aellenrhim Ava'ránn Aia'merán. However, such neat
stories to explain the eloquence of an essentially wild tribe remains total
speculation, mainly from elven quaters, and
is backed by very little hard physical evidence. This High Lady is attributed
with the tribes incredible eloquence of phrase and sharp philosophical
thinking. Whoever she was, fictional or not, she is attributed with the
articulate nature of these people, and that is no bad thing.

Housing.
Melád settlements have always been of a temporary nature and are used mainly
for sleeping and cooking in. Unlike other nomads - such as the
Sor'inyt or the
Shendar; who construct tents and take the
raw materials of the structures with them when it comes time to move on - the
Mélad'rhím do not carry anything with them while on the move. They build
structures which are referred to - mainly by outsiders as the
elves themselves have little need to refer
to them at all - as Zalari, a shortened version of Zalari'zoúm (Old Injerín
tongue "Zalarián" - meaning literally home that is passed on). The name comes
from the fact that when time comes for the
elves to move on - usually after a few weeks, the structures are simply
left; either to decay, returning what the elves
have harvested to the soil and so completing the cycle that is so important to
them, or to be reoccupied by other races that inhabit that particular area. It
is common for humans often to take over
previous Melád settlements and make them their own, often fortifying their
frail structures.

Zalari are built around the central livestock enclosure (or ophá in
Styrásh) that are edged by
peripheral fences, made from dead wood. Zalari are themselves are made of
poles, twigs, and grass, and plastered with
cow dung and mud. They are characterised by low flat roofs and are often
square in shape. Ventilation is channelled through a narrow opening which
serves as the entrance and some Zalari have one or two "windows" - holes in the
wall of no more than 20 x 20 centimetres. The same approach to house building
is taken by several Southern Sarvonian tribes, but the warmer weather makes the
result significantly more durable. In the wet and cold of the North, Zalari are
marked by a lack of durability. The roof and the walls frequently crack and
peel, they are susceptible to fire, pests and harsh weather and do not stand up
well to high winds. To maintain a zalari of this kind for more than a month
would be a nearly impossible job without using other building materials.
However, as the Melád never really intend to stay in a place as long as this
they don't seem to mind the drawbacks to their methods of building.

In the winter months, however, certain alterations are made to help make their
homes a little more durable. Over the basic frame tanned hides are used, which
hold the structure together more firmly and keep out the cold and the wet more
sucessfully. The hide base is then covered with a vail of rough fabric and then
the normal building materials are applied on top. The fabric covering prevents
the hides becoming soiled and allows them to be recylced. These are the only
building materials that the Grey elves will salvage and take with them.

Clothing.
Clothing is at once both simple and practical, but also elaboratly decorated
with the Melád's famed line working. The Melád elves make their clothing from
hardwearing and water repellant materials that will help keep the cold out.
Woolen capes are made by the tribe to keep the cold out, but restrict movement,
so may not be worn during physical activity. Leather is a favourite, obtained
from the small number of animals they herd. They also wear hides and skins from
the nul'tum which they obtain from the
Artyrhón or from hunting in the
Kuglimz lands (which, it must be noted,
isn't overly popular with the Kuglimz).
These are fashioned into a vest, which is light weight and leaves the arms free
and allows dexterity - very important to the Melád lifestyle. Both sexes wear
trousers fashioned from animal hide, as trousers are simply more practical.
Because of the harshness of their world, those who participate in harder
functions, such as hunting, gathering and on occasion fighting, also make
protectors for the major joints; the elbows, wrists, knees and ankles to
prevent jarring and strains; a strained ankle in this nomadic tribe can be the
difference between life and death. Hide boots are popular also, souled usually
with wood. The tribe also produces small amounts of personal metal work,
probably during the winter months when the tribe is stationary for a period of
time from ores found around. They make belts, bracelets and weapons that are
crude, and yet in their own peculiar way quite exquisite to behold.

Small amounts of jewellery is also occasionally worn. It will have been
fashioned by them personally, or by a close friend or relative. All jewllery
is, however, small and worn close to the skin - to wear dangling ornaments
simply is possible. Many things are used to make their adornments: metals,
flax, seashells, pretty pebbles or animal teeth (which may also adorn the joint
coverings).

Diet.
The Melad Elves are primarily hunter gatherers, but also herd small numbers of
livestock, mainly goats - which were probably originally obtained from the
Kuglimz - and
sawis sheep, as they are less
agressive than the cuncu and
slightly hardier and small numbers of elk, which also live wild in the
Northern continent. They also
keep a few kev'lor horses that
are well tended to (the elves of course do
not eat the horses, but I mention it here only because it seems a good point to
bring it to your attention).

However, the Mélad'rhím are very attached to their animals, and prefer only to
take their meat and hide when the animal dies a death of natural causes than
kill it. As a result their main diet consists of nuts, berries and roots that
they can collect from their environent. They may also hunt, but are loathed to
take life from an animal and when they do hunt, they are very careful to take
old or sick animals.

Weapons.
The favourite weapons of the Melád are spears - easily fashioned from metal or
from flint - and useful at long and short distances. Daggers can be fashioned
from by the tribe - but swords require far more resources than the tribe has
at its disposal, so if this is the favoured weapon then the
elf must trade for one and they can be
obtained by the Kuglimz.

Sling shots are also popular, costing nothing and requiring little effort to
construct.

Occupations.
The burdens of the tribe are split equally, with no
elf taking responsibilty for any specific
area. Instead each elf is a "jack of all
trades" with all members taking it in turn to hunt, prepare food, tend the
animals, look after the children. Little distinction is made between the sexes
either, with males and females spending the same amount of time on each task.
This strange rota system is not strict or particularly orderly, nor is it
organised or orchestrated by any one member of the tribe. Individuals simply
know instinctively what they should be doing and when. They are so reliant upon
each other for survival that an almost empathic link exists between them. Just
as the cells of the body work together to be a whole organism simply by knowing
what the cells around it are doing, so the individual Grey Elf marks his/her
function by what he/she sees what needs to be doen at that particular time.

Government.
The simple part of this section is to tell you the Melád elves have no
governmental structure in the common sense.

The Hard part is to explain to you how this does not descend into total
anarchy. It is difficult because it is not fully understood... - and yet it is
the state to which all wood elven cultures seem to aim.

As was hinted previously, there is no one elf in charge of the tribe. There
obviously was, at some point, a "Ránn" of some kind as all of the Wood Elves of
Northern Sarvonia make
reference to her who was the first leader, and the only leader. But the tribe
now functions as a communal unit.

All elves think in comunal terms -
Styrásh is built to reflect
that, with the word "I" very often replaced by the word "We". But few tribes
ever obtain a community so harmonious that they do not require a leader or wise
elder to give direction. This is probably a consequence of a certain ease of
survival. What I mean by that is this; in Southern Sarvonia, in the
Injerín's safe woods in the Aythron's High defended
coastal forts the elves are relativly safe
from attack - they are not likely to starve or be affected by the cold or damp.
As a result, the lack of pressure to survive means that other
elven tribes may argue about differences in
philosophy, idealology, acceptable behaviour and other such matters. They are
simply not dependend on their neighbours in the same way. The Melád elves are
under intense surivial pressure all the time. As a result their minds function
as a communal unit. Self preservation is tribe preservation.

Every action is taken for the good of the tribe. They are remarkably tuned into
the thoughts of the other. Melád elves are not telepaths you understand, but
certainly appear to be empathic to some extent. They do not have meetings to
discuss direction of movement or what is the best course of action, it is
almost as though they come to a communal agreement before the subject is even
broached verbally. The Injerín often describe this as
the simple following of instinct and that because they live in the same
conditions each elf has the same instincts
as his/her fellows, but somehow this just seems insufficient to explain the
incredibly efficient functioning of the tribe.

Given that their existence seems to tend toward the
elven ideal, it is curious, and somewhat
ironic, to note that their existence is in many ways far more similar to the
Rhom-Oc orcs than to any other
Sarvonianelf tribe.

Production/Trade.
The Grey Elves are predominantly self sufficient, living off the land. However,
there are certain things which they simply must obtain. Usually they will swap
their leather, metal and stone work for what they need. However, they also know
of many hidden mineral deposits all over the North and it has not been unknown
for them to take what they need to fund larger purchases such as horses or
livestock. The elves may also offer their
services as trackers, their knowledge of herbs or their skills as tellers of
tales to earn whatever currency will obtain them what they require.

Kára'ecuá
(lit. The Time of Disconnection)
The somber gathering begins with darkest hour of night, wooden models of their
ancient city of Parthenon are set afire while all around interlink hands all the
while the gathered sing songs of sorrow and shed many a tear. This is in
rememberance of the destruction of Parthenon by Gouran, and their feelings of
seperation from other elves not only
physically but also idealisticly.

Weívoc'kará (lit. Destiny's Time)
This is a three day event stretching from the fith to eighth day of Cort'ometra.
The fifth day begins with every child launching a wooden boat into the waters of
Eight Winds Bay. This signifies the escaping of the Arthyrón from the clutches
of Gouran into the sea. The rest of the day and the next are spent along the
beaches with ones family in thoughtful contemplation of the past. No food is
eaten, nor any drunk, not even a sheltered is allowed. This is so they may
faithfully remember their past. The third day though, is one of great rejoicing
and once again smiles break forth, just as the safety of their islands broke
forth from the waves and saved their forefathers.

Winter is also a very
important time for the Mélad'rhím. To be in one place offers them a period of
silent reflection of the Gods and the Dream. Thus it is in winter that you may
hear them sing and tell tales of the earliest of days.

History. Melád history is difficult to
trace or acertain. Lore is strictly oral, and the Grey elves take little
interest in their own past, interested
predominantly in gleaning what they can about creation from the present time.
Only certain tales stand out, most of which have been
mentioned previously.

The tribe seems to have its roots sometime about 500
b.S, created by a gathering of Injerín
and
Artyrhón elves, who under
each other's influence determined to chart the
Northern Sarvonian continent.
However, the tribe doesn't seem to have achieved this
- most of the maps of the continent are attributed to the
Artyrhón
or the Kuglimz.

At some point the Melád's purpose and philosophies
went under some kind of radical mutation. This is primarily attributed to the
figure the Grey elves call the "High Lady",
but as mentioned previously her identity, and her actual existence
are very difficult to ascertain. Her proposed existence
is hypothised for the mid 5th century b.S. This is when the wandering
elves first aquire the name
"Grey", probably from the Injerín
for what they think is unsound philosophy - a turning away by the
elven wanderers from the ancient books and
the teachings of the Injerín.

In the beginnings of their existence
the Grey elves wondered close to the Western
seaboard, before becoming more adventurous and moving futher and further west.
The only detailed recorded movement in their history
is that fabled trip to the Icelands, and even then it is only remembered in
such detail because the Mélad'rhím went to
Worldquest, the home of their parent tribes to recover after they were very
nearly wiped out by the trip back and told both parent tribes the stories
during their stay.